VMworld Hints At Post-Windows World

Windows' position within the business marketplace is shifting. Witness this yearâs VMworld conference in San Francisco. VMworld is the virtualization Mecca -- and this yearâs show could herald a new era for VMware competitor Microsoft: the post-Windows era.

News from a virtualization conference might not seem too relevant to Windows, but VMwareâs announcement Tuesday of its new Horizon Suite makes a lot of difference. The suite, available in beta in the fourth quarter, pulls together several of VMwareâs multi-platform management tools.

This is VMware committing to heterogeneous platforms, and thatâs a pretty big deal.

âFor nearly 30 years, Windows has been the dominant platform in the workplace,â explained Phil Montgomery, senior director of Product Management, Desktop Products at VMware. Now, he added, itâs Windows, Macs, iPads, and Android devices with which an IT manager has to contend.

The Horizon Suite promises to manage files, data and privileges across multiple platforms.